2 quick Obikin recs while I have the tabs open bc this was originally started as a fic rec sideblog
Within Limits, now orphaned on AO3, previously under the username "sacrilegist," originally posted on livejournal in 2005, 22k, explicit
summary: "Anakin’s fustration grows as he and Obi-Wan’s tour on the Outer Rim goes on with no end in sight."
very intricately written. a lot fic will say "oh how they bantered" or "they loved to quip" or "one would never let the other have the last word" and so on and leave it as an article of faith or something in a purely decorative, adjectival way intended to add some casual flavouring to the characterization of a relationship without actually working out or even caring very much about the sources and consequences of this kind of friction. NOT SO THIS ONE. The relationship IS essentially in its very form this contestation. of words, and emotions, and status, and autonomy. I don't think I have read another Obikin fic that so explicitly and thoroughly and continuously explores some essential conflict between the two of them in this way.
am I explaining it well? I don't think so. ok. there's a lot of fic that do some aspects of power negotiation very well. or you know, Darth Vader is some variant of evil/unacceptable/way beyond the norms of permissible behaviour and Obi-Wan is... not. And that poses an intractable conflict. this fic is like... what if we have that intractable conflict BEFORE any of that even begins to fully realize itself, assume it was there all along. (I think a very common premise anyway? but rarely taken seriously and written out all the way)
I am also very predisposed to the idea the Jedi Order is very casual about sex in terms of dogma or principle, but Anakin or (in this case) Obi-Wan have specific personal reasons why they cannot be casual about sex with each other. this fic is a great example. (I also enjoy interpretations when they are casual about sex with each other. please msg/reply w recs if you know of any!)
History Never Repeats, ValiantBarnes (Cimila), 36k, mature
summary: "There's no possible way to keep track of how long Obi-wan's lived, now. He lives, he dies, he lives again. He'll wake up somewhere in the past, the possibility of change infuriatingly close but forever out of reach. Anakin always falls to Vader; the Republic always fails. The hows and whys of both are not set, Obi-wan's interference never changing anything for the better.
He quite dislikes the lives where they find themselves on Mustufar. The heat of it, the stench; Anakin's yellow eyes burning more than the lava ever could.
Sometimes, Obi-wan misses the sickly yellow of them as much as he does clear, sky blue."
if I had to pick, this is probably my favourite Obikin fic of all time. some things I really care about: intractable conflict, Obi-Wan's infinite sadness (did you know the tag "infinite sadness" on ao3 actually directs back to Obi-Wan's infinite sadness specifically???), a certain level of fidelity to canon and canon characterization if we're not going total AU or similar, murderous impulses taken to their logical conclusion
at longer length: I think I like this so much more than other (also excellent) time loop stories because it never lets go of the brutality of Vader's crimes and his personal involvement in the fall of the Republic as the underlying engine driving all of Obi-Wan's choices and actions. and so Obi-Wan will never stop trying to thwart Vader and Sidious by whatever means necessary. like of course it's a personal history/story for Obi-Wan and Anakin and that, as usual, is the emotional core of this fic. but they were also adherents of ideologies. real true believers. the violation was not only at the level of personal betrayal (and murder and maiming and so on) but a fundamental breach to belief systems they were living and dying for - ie the Republic. the destruction of everything once held dear doesn't just happen incidentally or accidentally. I read Obikin fic because I care about their relationship, but I care about their relationship because it's an artifact of a galactically rending conflict preceded and followed by centuries of rebellion and revolution, which is not something that could be avoided with just a change in disposition or temperament. there has to be a futility to the effort and at the same time there can never be any question Obi-Wan would ever stop throwing himself on the pyre of history in a seemingly hopeless attempt to put it out. Spoiler alert: we are rewarded w a HEA, a very lovely wrapped with a bow HEA, and it feels earned precisely because it was not guaranteed. to be honest I don't think I would be as emotionally satisfied or loved this as much if it was otherwise but I would almost respect it more for leaving us hanging
please read this fic I love it so much